North Korea fired a volley of short-range rockets on Monday morning, a day after South Korea and the US staged combined air drills in an attempted show of force in response to a missile test previously conducted by Pyongyang.
DPRK testing the Hwasong-15 long range ballistic missile, theoretically capable of striking the US mainland. It flew 989 km in 4015 seconds, reaching an altitude of 5768 meters and was in the air for 66 minutes. It landed off of the coast of Japan
— ☭ (@COMMUNIST333) February 20, 2023
Monday’s drills were therefore conducted in response to these exercises, as well as previous provoking drills that have aggravated regional security in the peninsulam, State-media Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reports.
The U.S. and ROK conducted a combined air training event with the USAF B-1 Lancer high above the Korean Peninsula on Feb 19, 2023.
ROKAF F-35s and USAF F-16s joined in offering the alliance an opportunity to rehearse short-notice recall missions. #WeFlyTogether #ROKUSAlliance pic.twitter.com/2Rk9FPcsFO— U.S. Forces Korea (@USForcesKorea) February 19, 2023
The DPRK claims that the multi-rocket launch exercise is capable of a “tactical nuclear attack” with the capacity to take out entire enemy air bases.
“Through today’s firing drill with the involvement of super-large multiple rocket launchers, the tactical nuclear attack means, the KPA demonstrated its full readiness to deter and will to counter” the joint air drills, KCNA said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s outspoken sister, Kim Yo-jong, vowed “to make the worst maniacs escalating the tensions pay the price for their action,” responding to the allies’ show of force with a separate statement carried by KCNA on Monday morning.
“The frequency of using the Pacific as our firing range depends upon the US forces’ action character,” she wrote. “We are well aware of the movement of US forces’ strategic strike means recently getting brisk around the Korean Peninsula.”
A week ago, the DPRK warned of an “unprecedentedly” strong response to joint military exercises by the US and South Korea, and warned the UN Security Council that the dismissal of those threats will result in retaliation.
Source: Websites
